Batman: Descent Into Mystery

Maybe it is because I grew up with the original version, I prefer that one over this, but with all that, I still did enjoy this!

For my first viewing of this edit, I have to say I enjoyed it, maybe after multiple viewings I'll fall in love with it.

UPDATE: Even though, I guess due to nostaglia, I will always love the original, but this deserves to be on my dvd shelf! Dwight Fry, you did a great job with this edit!

I watched this yesterday, on my tablet with headphones.

I mostly agree with njvc's review.

The bad: well, I own the Bluray of this movie, with surround sound and this particular edit cannot replace my copy because the richness of Tim Burton's movie doesn't come to full display with this offered video file. I don't know if the color correction is an issue with the DVD release but this version, I find the colors rather murky and obviously detail is missing, resolution-wise. So on the basis of visual image and sound, I would have to stay with the original source.

The volume was rather low, I had to turn the audio way up. I checked on my 60" TV as well as PC.

Alfred is sorely undercut.

The good: removing Vicky Vale works, the shortened museum encounter works, removing Joker as Bruce's killer works.

All in all, I would say that it is a good edit in that it appears seamless, I can only see it because I am well familiar with this movie and a Batman fan to boot. I didn't like Tim Burton's Batman movies until Joel Schumacher came long and showed how much worse it could be.

As a *movie ending*, it does seem rather unsatisfying and over quick, but as story-telling, it does work.

If you want to see a shorter Batman 1989, watch it, with no Batman-killings, no Joker killed his parents and no Vicky Vale knows his secret. If you enjoy visual quality and surround sound, the changes are not enough to make me want to switch.

Good job.

Wow, what a tough one to review. I'm a big fan of Burton's Batman movies, but Batman himself I can take or leave. I've never read a comic book, and in fact Batman '89 and Batman Returns are the only two superhero movies I've had any interest in. I never had problems with things like Vicki at the Batcave, the romance between Bruce and Vicki, the Partyman sequence, and so on. Watching this with an open mind was tough to do, but I did my best.

While I can't say I enjoyed this as much as the original, I will give Dwight credit for accomplishing his goals. The edit is very well executed, and despite my enjoyment of the material that has been excised, the movie works just fine the way Dwight has cut it down. It's a very good effort that I have no problem recommending, if for no other reason that it provides a new take on an old(ish) classic.

I should note that I did wish the "To Bill" bit was done after the fade-out, rather than over the final shot of the movie. It felt a little heavy-handed to me.

And one odd note: I was very concerned during the opening credits because either the words or the background (couldn't tell which) seemed to be jumping around a little. However, after watching the edit, I popped in my original DVD, and it suffered the same issue. *shrug*

I give this a solid 8/10 overall, and it's only my personal preferences that keep me from rating this higher. Well done!

For me what makes a great fanedit is to offer the viewer an alternative to the original and not to replace it. The Batman film of 89 will always have a special place for me, I still have memories of the large cues which stretched around the cinema, and the news paper clippings I collected made it one of the most anticipated films for me. This was also one of the first films in the UK that carried a 12 certificate and being around 10 or 11 at the time I had to wait until the end of its run before my father took me to see it (the age restriction limit was a lot tougher back then)

So looking at Dwights cultist there wasn't a lot on there that I felt made it a bad film, I mean the relationship between Bruce and Vicki didn't bother me nor did Batman killing The Jokers goons. I've never been a big comic book reader so the idea of making this Batman closer to his origins again wasn't greatly appealing. However with that being said I go back to my opening sentence for me a great fanedit offers the viewer an alternative to the original and this is a great fanedit.

Having watched a work print version a while I recall switching off the edit and started to flick through the original and to my surprise I couldn't believe how much footage had been removed without me missing it. This is a film I’ve seen countless number of times during the years and to see a version that removes the love relationship between two main characters so well done and is the highlight of this edit.

Even some of the joker scenes most notably the museum section which I really liked I didn't particularly miss. This is because the edit doesn’t suffer from any obvious cuts and keeps the flow and the pace of the film at a fast pace.

The only negative for me was the use of the flashback scene in which Bruces parents are killed, it left me a little confused as to whether Bruce knows that Jack/Joker is the man responsible for their deaths. I put this down mainly to myself not being able to fully detach myself from the original film, but I do fell the scene wasn't necessary.

Overall I can only backup what over people have said about this edit not only is it one of the best edits of the year but will be remembered as one of the best edits of all time. I now look at my original batman copy as a extended version but it will be a hard decision to make when it comes to watching Batman again. The short edit The Killing Joke by Blueyoda is also a welcome highlight.

BATMAN DESCENT INTO MYSTERY

I had the extreme honor of watching this fan edit yesterday, and after ages of anticipation,
I can honestly say, I was not disappointed.

This is a solid, entertaining edit.

Dwightfry set out with a list of specific goals for this edit, I believe has achieved each one very successfully.

The color correction work is very nice, the colors are deeper, cleaner and richer. The video quality is excellent.

The audio work is strong and professional. Considering Dwight had a couple of really tricky scene transitions with little or inappropriate audio cues to work with, the end result is surprising, clever and masterful.

The menu design is simple and functional. There are some nice bonus items, including a Joker (Heath Ledger) short by BluYoda.

As for the edit itself, it works wonderfully.

The two main objectives narrative wise were to remove the Vicky Vale/Bruce Wayne romance and to trim Batman's actions so they are more in line with the accepted traditional comic book version.

Dwight is highly successful in both objectives. The new narrative flows smoothly, I did not even realized certain scenes were missing until after the edit was over and I started thinking about what I saw or did not see. So that is a fantastic testament to Dwight's storytelling ability! Great work!

The story stays focused on the Joker and Batman, keeping the tension level high. Though the one downside of no romance story, is there is even less Bruce Wayne, making the movie feel even more about Jack and less about the Bat. But at the same time, it creates more of an air of mystery around Bruce and Batman. He feels almost more like a Force of Nature, than just a man.

Which leads nicely into Dwight's second objective, making Batman closer to his comic book origins and removing the gun wielding Batman element. As every Bat Fan knows, Batman abhors guns! He would never use one. He certainly would not mount them on his Batmobile or Batwing and fire them into a crowd of people. This is the one element of the Tim Burton films I hated the most, and Dwight has masterfully removed them. Thank You! There are many other little tweaks and trims throughout that bring this movie Batman closer to his graphic novel counterpart that I think Batfans will catch and enjoy.

As I said before, this is an excellent edit. It engages and entertains. The new story works and it is technically solid.

I recommend it to all Batman Fans.

THUMBS UP!

Thanks for the great show Dwight!